JOHOR BAHRU, June 22 — A routine errand turned into a nightmare for a worker who was forced to abandon his company’s new lorry as fire rapidly spread from a nearby engine oil storage facility.

Aiman Abdullah, 23, had gone to a recycling centre to purchase a used water tank when the blaze broke out.

“The fire started around 12.30 pm. I saw thick smoke and flames coming from the section where hundreds of drums and oil containers were stored,” said a visibly shaken Aiman, speaking to Bernama at the site today.

Trapped inside the compound, he was advised by firefighters not to drive out through the main entrance due to the danger.

He said investigations found that only one of the premises, a palm oil storage facility, had a licence from the council and the Malaysian Palm Oil Board, Bernama reported.

He said the city would take action against the remaining businesses, including a car wash service, vehicle parking, a used items dealer, and several workshops.

“The land was leased to these premises, but we found only the palm oil storage facility to be licensed,” the mayor said. Further steps would be taken, including requesting the Solid Waste Management and Public Cleansing Corporation to take action, especially since one of the tenants deals in scrap materials, he told reporters after visiting the site today.

Bernama said the road leading to the site of the fire had been cordoned off by authorities. Members of the public were seen gathering in the area early this morning to view the aftermath of the blaze.

The fire and rescue department were alerted to the fire at 12.54pm yesterday, and deployed 34 personnel and equipment from multiple fire stations. Five premises were affected by the fire, which destroyed 15 vehicles and an area of about 1,000 sq m.

JOHOR BARU: A routine errand turned into a nightmare for a worker who was forced to abandon his company's new lorry as fire rapidly spread from a nearby engine oil storage facility.

Aiman Abdullah, 23, had gone to a recycling centre to purchase a used water tank when the blaze broke out yesterday. "The fire started around 12.30pm.

"I saw thick smoke and flames coming from the section where hundreds of drums and oil containers were stored," he said.

Trapped inside the compound, he was advised by firefighters not to drive out through the main entrance due to the danger.

He parked the one-tonne lorry further and fled through a narrow path to a nearby construction site about 100 metres away.

Hoping the distance would spare the vehicle, he watched helplessly as the fire, fuelled by leaking engine oil, quickly engulfed it, reducing it to a charred metal frame.

Yesterday, the Fire and Rescue Department reported receiving a distress call at 12.54pm. Fifteen vehicles were reported lost.

As of midday today, thick smoke was still seen billowing from the site, although firefighters confirmed 80 per cent of the fire had been extinguished.

The burnt-out remains of lorries, motorcycles, cars and metal scraps drew crowds from surrounding areas, including residents of Taman Megah Ria, just 50 metres from the site.

Long-time resident Lim Cheng Woon, 50, said he was unaware such a hazardous facility was located so close to his home.

"We didn't even know there was an engine oil storage next to our houses until the fire happened. "We sincerely hope it gets relocated.

"We don't want another disaster like this," he said.

Meanwhile, the Johor Department of Environment (DOE) confirmed that no abnormal readings of ammonia or other hazardous emissions had been detected in the vicinity.

The fire broke out an industrial facility storing engine oil and lorries along Jalan Cenderai 27, Taman Kota Puteri.

– Bernama

JOHOR BARU, June 22 — The Johor Department of Environment (DOE) did not detect any readings for ammonia at all monitoring locations around the area of the lorry and engine oil store fire at Jalan Cenderai 27, Taman Kota Puteri, Masai, here this morning.

Johor Department of Environment director Dr Mohd Famey Yusoff said this included the fire control post which recorded non-hazardous ammonia readings during monitoring conducted last night.

He said the monitoring, which began at 10am this morning, also involved Sekolah Kebangsaan Seri Kota Puteri, Makmur Maju Logistic Sdn Bhd and Jalan Cenderai 27, here.

“The results of air quality monitoring at all locations near the fire site, (also found) no readings for gas parameters and volatile organic compound (VOC) were detected,” he said in a statement today.

Johor Fire and Rescue Department Zone 1 chief, Senior Fire Superintendent I Zaipulbahri Mat Rusok was reported to have said that the operation in Division 1 following the fire at the store was completed at 4am this morning.

However, he said that extinguishing work at Division 2 at the incident location was still continuing due to difficulties due to the obstruction of large and numerous oil drums, making it difficult for firefighters to access the fire to extinguish the fire.

A total of five premises were burnt in the incident involving an area of about 1,000 square metres, including 15 vehicles that were also destroyed.

The Fire and Rescue Department (JBPM) operations centre received an emergency call on the incident at 12.54pm and a total of 34 personnel and assets from several fire stations including volunteer teams were rushed to the scene. — Bernama